GENRE: In Focus

With increased demand for Aadhaar cards and the urgency among people to get the card, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has taken initiative to provide the cards electronically. Now you can get e-Aadhaar card, without having to wait for the UIDAI to send the card to you. Though this service was introduced a year ago, not many know about it. Sources in the E-governance Department which has been entrusted with the task of providing this service say that they do not have numbers available on how many e-Aadhaar cards have been issued. Why e-Aadhaar card? E-Aadhaar is a…

Monsoon is at its best this year. Rivers and reservoirs are in spate, enhancing the beauty of waterfalls across the state manifold. Weekends are your chance to revel in the lap of nature and water, more so if the weekend is long. Citizen Matters lists some destinations that are not very far from Bangalore, where you can spend your weekends this monsoon. Google maps or GPS navigation would be your best friend for all these journeys, if you are driving on your own. A trip to Shivanasamudra will ensure you enjoy the beauty of the twin falls -Gaganachukki and Bharachukki…

Haseena was attacked with acid in 1999. She lost her eyes forever, her body suffered severe damage, which stole her right to live like all of us. Her attacker spent only five years in jail, and has faded away from public memory. However, Haseena refused to go down in life. She took up a computer course and learnt to stand on her won feet. Now she’s employed, and helping other visually impaired become self-reliant. Haseena narrates her story to Citizen Matters. Over to Haseena. I was born and brought up in this beautiful city of Bangalore, where my parents and…

Inclusiveness’ is the word for namma literary extravaganza, the Bangalore Literature Festival, to be held from September 27 to 29 this year at Jayamahal Palace. There are authors appealing to both the commoners and cognoscenti, English as well as bhasha readers, while technology is being used to democratise and promote. Vikram Sampath, author, musician, archivist, team leader in an IT firm and one of the co-founders of the festival, points out that BLF’s inclusive, tech-savvy personality is reflective of the city. Here’s an interview with Vikram Sampath, where he reveals his plans for the literature festival. Vikram Sampath talks about…

Nazia Hanifa, 31, a resident of Jayanagar, is frustrated about her career. The reason: she wanted to be a scientist, but did not get a suitable job after completing her Masters in Microbiology. After working for six years in a multinational company without any promotions, she quit her job earlier this year to be a homemaker. She is now considering taking up a course on business analysis, so that she can restart her career. Nazia says that if she had got the right advice in her college to take up right courses and subjects, things would have been different. “If…

Bangalore houses roughly around one crore citizens. As the city grows, crime rate too goes up. To facilitate smooth flow of grievance redressal mechanism and complaint follow ups, Police Department has brought certain services under Sakala scheme, to aid the citizens in getting their work done in time. However, how many people are aware of this? The Police Computer Wing (PCW) of the Karnataka State Police had introduced 21 services under the Sakala scheme, in April 2012. Four months ago, the PCW also launched the mobile SMS Gateway service. But its reach has been limited. Speaking to Citizen Matters, ADGP,…

The realignment of Namma Metro is something that has remained a mystery - why the realignment? Why cannot a heart hospital have Metro near it? There seem to be no clear answers to this question, though the realignment of the route has already been decided. Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and Research vehemently protested the plans for the Metro to pass through the hospital’s parking area. On the other hand, Narayana Hrudayalaya, another prestigious heart hospital in the city, has requested BMRCL to extend its line from Electronic City to Chandapura Post - a 5 km away from the last…

Ever so often, somebody makes the statement – that we need to have a right to water. You can substitute water with education, food, health or any other resource-dependent ‘right’ — the arguments are quite similar: that not enough people have sufficient access to it, that the lack of availability of the right was a fundamental human indignity, that it was likely against the fundamental right to life guaranteed by the constitution, and that it was high time the state did something about it. For better or worse, this has now resulted in Right to Education legislation, and will likely…

In part I of the series 'Blending with Bangalore,' Citizen Matters had explained the trend among non-Kannadigas to learn Kannada. Here is part II of the series, that throws some insights on how to learn Kannada in Bangalore. Kannada class being conducted by Kannada Learning School Pic courtesy: kannadalearningschool.com Journey from ‘Kannada Barolla’ to ‘swalpa barutte’, and then to ‘Kannada Barotte’ can be a pleasant and exciting ride if you choose the right path. Kannada is a very simple yet rich language. If you have real interest in the language, it is possible to speak reasonable Kannada within one month,…

It's not a long journey from 'Kannada baralla' to 'Kannada barutte' anymore. Pic courtesy: kannadalearningschool.com Here is a good news for all “Kannada premigalu”, whose resentment has been growing over years on the ailing status of Kannada in Bangalore. Contrary to the doomsday predictions for Kannada language, many non-kannadigas of Bangalore who were earlier stuck at “Kannada Barolla” are showing interest to learn the local language. The Silicon City is witnessing this trend over  last few years, which has resulted in popping up of many Kannada courses and Kannada learning websites. As Bangalore evolved into the IT capital of India,…